The Most Famous

SOCCER PLAYERS from Cameroon

This page contains a list of the greatest Cameroonian Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 105 of which were born in Cameroon. This makes Cameroon the birth place of the 36th most number of Soccer Players behind Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Slovakia.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Cameroonian Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Cameroonian Soccer Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Cameroonian Soccer Players.

1. Roger Milla (b. 1952)

With an HPI of 66.97, Roger Milla is the most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages on wikipedia.

Albert Roger Miller (born 20 May 1952), known as Roger Milla, is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He was one of the first African players to be a major star on the international stage. He played in three World Cups for the Cameroon national team. He achieved international stardom at 38 years old, an age at which most forwards have retired, by scoring four goals at the 1990 FIFA World Cup and thus becoming the oldest goalscorer in World Cup history. He helped Cameroon become the first African team to reach the World Cup quarter-finals. Four years later, at the age of 42, Milla broke his own record as the oldest goalscorer in World Cup by scoring against Russia in the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Milla frequently celebrated goals by running to the corner flag and performing a dance similar to the lambada. In 2004 he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players. In 2007, the Confederation of African Football named Milla the best African player of the previous 50 years. At the time of his retirement, he was regarded as the all-time topscorer from African region in FIFA World Cup finals with five goals and his record was eventually surpassed by Ghana's Asamoah Gyan.

2. Samuel Eto'o (b. 1981)

With an HPI of 61.50, Samuel Eto'o is the 2nd most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 77 different languages.

Samuel Eto'o Fils (French pronunciation: [samɥɛl eto fis]; born 10 March 1981) is a Cameroonian football administrator and former player who is the current president of the Cameroonian Football Federation. He won the African Player of the Year a record four times: in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010. A precocious talent, Eto'o moved to Real Madrid as a 16 year old. Due to competition in his position with more experienced players, he had several loan spells, before signing for Mallorca in 2000 where he scored 70 goals, a club record. His impressive form saw him join Barcelona in 2004 where he scored 130 goals in five seasons and also became the record holder for the most appearances by an African player in La Liga. Winning La Liga three times, he was a key member of the Barcelona attack, alongside Ronaldinho, that won the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final, with Eto'o scoring in the final, and was part of a front three of Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry that won the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final, with Eto'o again scoring in the final. He is the second player in history to score in two UEFA Champions League finals. At Barcelona, Eto'o came in third for the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2005 and was twice named in the FIFA FIFPro World XI, in 2005 and 2006. He signed with Inter Milan for the 2009–10 season, where he became the first player to win two European continental trebles following his back-to-back achievements with Barcelona and Inter. He is the fourth player in Champions League history, after Marcel Desailly, Paulo Sousa, and Gerard Piqué, to have won the trophy two years in a row with different teams. After brief spells with Anzhi Makhachkala, Chelsea, Everton, and Sampdoria, Eto'o found prolific form again in the Süper Lig with Antalyaspor having scored 44 goals in 76 league games. In 2015, he received the Golden Foot Award. As a member of the Cameroon national team, Eto'o was a part of the squad that won the Gold Medal at the 2000 Olympics. He also won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2000 and 2002. Eto'o has participated in four World Cups and six Africa Cup of Nations. He is the all-time leading scorer in the history of the Africa Cup of Nations, with 18 goals, and is Cameroon's all-time leading scorer and third most capped player, with 56 goals in 118 caps. Eto'o announced his retirement from international football in August 2014.

3. Thomas N'Kono (b. 1956)

With an HPI of 58.32, Thomas N'Kono is the 3rd most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 32 different languages.

Thomas N'Kono (born 20 July 1956) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer. One of the greatest goalkeepers from the continent of Africa, he was mainly associated with Espanyol, whom he represented for almost a decade playing more than 300 official matches. N'Kono appeared for the Cameroon national team in three World Cups, and four Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.

4. André Onana (b. 1996)

With an HPI of 57.08, André Onana is the 4th most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 48 different languages.

André Onana Onana (French pronunciation: [ɑ̃dʁe ɔnana]; born 2 April 1996) is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Manchester United and the Cameroon national team. Onana joined Barcelona's youth system in 2010. He signed for Ajax in 2015, where he made 214 appearances and won three Eredivisie titles. Onana joined Inter Milan on a free transfer in July 2022, winning a Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana title in his sole season at the club, also reaching the Champions League final. Manchester United then signed Onana for an initial £43.8 million in 2023. At international level, Onana has made more than 40 appearances for the Cameroon national team since making his debut in September 2016.

5. Patrick M'Boma (b. 1970)

With an HPI of 55.29, Patrick M'Boma is the 5th most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 51 different languages.

Henri Patrick Mboma Dem (born 15 November 1970) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is the fourth all-time top goal-scorer for the Cameroon national team.

6. Marc-Vivien Foé (1975 - 2003)

With an HPI of 52.81, Marc-Vivien Foé is the 6th most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 38 different languages.

Marc-Vivien Foé (1 May 1975 – 26 June 2003) was a Cameroonian professional footballer, who played as a defensive midfielder for both club and country. Having initially played for Canon Yaoundé, Foé went on to play professionally in Ligue 1 and the Premier League with Lens, West Ham United, Lyon and Manchester City. On 26 June 2003, Foé died suddenly during an international match for Cameroon, an event which shocked the football community worldwide. The death was later ruled to be due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. He was capped 62 times by his nation and had scored 8 goals. He was posthumously decorated with the Commander of the National Order of Valour and had his shirt numbers 23 and 17 retired by Manchester City and Lens, respectively.

7. Joseph-Antoine Bell (b. 1954)

With an HPI of 51.45, Joseph-Antoine Bell is the 7th most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Joseph-Antoine Bell (born 8 October 1954), sometimes referred to as JoJo Bell, is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. In a 20-year career, he played in his native Cameroon as well as in the Ivory Coast and Egypt before moving to France, where he played for several top-level clubs including Marseille, Bordeaux and eventually ending his playing career with Saint-Étienne. He played for the national team in three World Cups (1982, 1990, 1994), the 1984 Summer Olympics and several African Cup of Nations.

8. Rigobert Song (b. 1976)

With an HPI of 51.37, Rigobert Song is the 8th most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 36 different languages.

Rigobert Song Bahanag (born 1 July 1976) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who was most recently the manager of the Cameroon national team. Known for his defensive skills, Song usually played as a centre-back, but could also operate at right-back. Internationally, he played at a record eight Africa Cup of Nations tournaments and served as captain in five (the ones he was not captain for were South Africa 1996, Burkina Faso 1998 and Angola 2010), a record, and holds the record of most consecutive games played in the tournament with 35 first team games. He has won two CAF Africa Cup of Nations titles in 2000 and 2002. In 2009, Song was dropped as Cameroon skipper by new coach Paul Le Guen, who eventually appointed Samuel Eto'o as the new captain, which later caused concerns, as Song had never been on the bench in more than eleven years for Cameroon. With 137 appearances, Song also holds the record of the most capped player in the history of the Cameroon national team and has played in four World Cups, in 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2010. Song started his professional career with Metz and helped the club to win the Coupe de la Ligue in 1996. After appearing at the 1998 World Cup, he joined Salernitana, newly promoted to the top-flight Italian Serie A. In January 1999, he left Italy to start successive stints with Liverpool, West Ham United and 1. FC Köln, but after failing to hold down a first-team place, he returned to France to play for Lens. He stayed there until 2004, before moving on to Turkey, where he spent four years with Galatasaray, winning two Süper Lig titles and the Turkish Cup. Song then signed a contract with Trabzonspor in 2008, where he won another Turkish Cup and stayed until 2010. Aside from Zinedine Zidane, Song is the only player to have been sent off in two different World Cups, once against Brazil in 1994 and against Chile in 1998. He also holds the record as youngest player ever to be sent off in a World Cup, aged 17. Nicknamed "Big Chief" by Turkish fans, he is the uncle of fellow Cameroon defensive midfielder Alex Song and of rugby league player Junior Nsemba

9. Samuel Umtiti (b. 1993)

With an HPI of 50.61, Samuel Umtiti is the 9th most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 65 different languages.

Samuel Yves Um Titi (French pronunciation: [samɥɛl umtiti]; born 14 November 1993), known as Samuel Umtiti, is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre back for Ligue 1 club Lille. Umtiti began his professional career with Olympique Lyonnais in 2012, winning both the Coupe de France and Trophée des Champions in his first year. He totalled 170 games and three goals before a €25 million transfer to La Liga club Barcelona in 2016, winning three Copa del Rey and two league titles whilst a part of the side. After a loan in Italy to Lecce, he returned to France with Lille in 2023. After winning 47 caps and scoring three goals at youth level, including winning the 2013 U-20 World Cup, Umtiti made his senior debut for the France national team at UEFA Euro 2016, where they reached the final. Two years later, he was part of the squad that won the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He scored the only goal of the match in the semi-final against Belgium.

10. Vincent Aboubakar (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 50.29, Vincent Aboubakar is the 10th most famous Cameroonian Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 48 different languages.

Vincent Aboubakar (born 22 January 1992) is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Süper Lig club Hatayspor and captains the Cameroon national team. Aboubakar began his career at Coton Sport and moved to Europe in 2010, playing for Ligue 1 clubs Valenciennes and Lorient, totalling 109 appearances and 26 goals in France's top division. In 2015, he signed for Porto, where he played 125 games and scored 58 goals, winning a Primeira Liga title. He won the Turkish Süper Lig while on loan at Beşiktaş in 2017, and again in 2021. Aboubakar has earned over 100 caps for Cameroon since his international debut in May 2010. He is currently the third-highest scorer in the history of the national team, behind only Samuel Eto'o and Roger Milla. He was part of their squads for the 2010, 2014 and 2022 FIFA World Cups, as well as the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015, 2017, 2021 and 2023. Aboubakar scored the winning goal in the final of the 2017 tournament, and was the top goalscorer of the 2021 edition.

People

Pantheon has 125 people classified as Cameroonian soccer players born between 1952 and 2004. Of these 125, 115 (92.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Cameroonian soccer players include Roger Milla, Samuel Eto'o, and Thomas N'Kono. The most famous deceased Cameroonian soccer players include Marc-Vivien Foé, Théophile Abega, and Stephen Tataw. As of April 2024, 18 new Cameroonian soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Ephrem M'Bom, Louis-Paul M'Fédé, and Jacques N'Guea.